Help send Yervant to Oxford
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I have been offered a place to pursue a doctorate in Armenian Studies and Eastern Christianity at Oxford University. This is an exceptional opportunity, which I have spent years preparing for. Please consider supporting this campaign to help defray the costs of study. I have spent much of my life serving the community- as a deacon, a chaplain, and a scholar. This rare opportunity will allow me to continue my study of Armenian Christian Spirituality, engaging with the textual tradition to bring its riches to today's audiences.
Here is some information about the research project I will be pursuing:
“To know wisdom and instruction...” were the first words to see the light of day upon the creation of the Armenian alphabet. Certainly those pioneering translators exercised great intention as they decided what words to put down first in the language of the Armenian people. Those words from the biblical book of Proverbs continue to serve as the foundation of Armenian thought and scholarship 1,600 years later and frame the work I shall undertake this autumn in pursuit of a Doctor of Philosophy in Armenian Studies and Eastern Christianity from the Oriental Institute at Oxford University. To my knowledge, it would be the first of its kind in the field of Armenian Studies in the western world: a scholarly treatment, in English, of the late eleventh century Armenian translation of Daniel of Salah’s sixth century Syriac Psalms Commentary. Beyond the immediate implications for the furthering of Armenian Studies in expanding accessibility to one of its valuable historic works, bringing to light the thoughts and ideas in this particular work could richly add to the broader fields of theology and philosophy.
As with St. Mesrop Mashtots and his contemporaries, translation work is close to my heart and personal history. The history of an ancestor who completed much of the work on a modern Armenian translation of the Bible in the late 19th century coupled with learning of the untapped riches of the Armenian textual tradition, locked away in more than 30,000 manuscripts, inspired me to begin my study of Classical Armenian sixteen years ago with a deep desire to contribute to making these works accessible both for scholarship purposes and for the edification of the general populace. Much effort has been devoted to works of historical value, while far less has been given to the study of theological and spiritual works. I have worked to do my part to begin filling in this void with several previous translations and now I seek to devote myself more fully to this task through intensive study of four Psalms commentaries in Classical Armenian with longer term goals of translating texts and ideas for the contemporary individual. My expertise in Classical Armenian and knowledge of Syriac allow me to be one of the privileged few worldwide that could undertake this specific project. Following my doctoral studies I hope to continue my work and service full-time to the Armenian community by making our spiritual and intellectual heritage available to both its heirs and the worldwide community. Funding would make this possible and benefit not only my studies, but the scholarship of future generations of Armenian Studies scholars.
About me:
Exactly twenty years ago, the course of my life changed—at first subtly but not long after quite dramatically. The summer before my senior year at Georgetown, where I was studying international politics, I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Abraham Terian, of St. Nersess Seminary, speak on the topic of Classical Armenian and the rich corpus of manuscripts preserved in this language. He held up a pencil to demonstrate, “If this pencil represents all of the works preserved in Classical Armenian, then the sharpened tip shows what portion has been published as is. And you see the tiny graphite tip? That is what portion has been translated or worked with in any meaningful way.” Wow. I let that understanding sink in. In spite of the region’s tumultuous history, Classical Armenian preserves the second largest corpus of manuscripts! And very few people are capable of and working to share these literary treasures with the modern world. It was in that moment that I first thought, “this is something I could do and something I would love doing!” That lecture forever changed me and set in motion the events that led me to the threshold where I find myself today. I went on to complete my degree, and this thought moved to the back of my head, but when I again heard Dr. Terian speak three years later, that spark reignited and I found myself asking him where I could study Classical Armenian. This led me to St. Nersess where I enjoyed three years studying with experts in the language and manuscript tradition. Subsequently I spent a year as a teaching assistant and completed my first translation of a work from Classical Armenian into English, which will be published in the very near future.
Life’s road can be winding, and my course veered for a decade as I responded to what life brought my way. I enjoyed rewarding careers in public finance and in healthcare chaplaincy, both of which have afforded me life experience that will shape my path going forward in important ways. When I first began in chaplaincy, I was introduced to the idea of experiencing people as “living documents” a concept that was very appealing to the scholar in me. As I’ve matured in my experience as a chaplain, I’ve also come to an understanding of texts and manuscripts as embodying a very real and organic life of their own. Only recently have I had the realization that the path to unlocking the vast riches of the Armenian manuscript tradition lies not just in translating these works for people to read, but also in conveying the concepts and ideas they contain in vibrant ways to modern audiences for their own use and integration. After this decade-long period of growth and maturity I am now being offered the extraordinary opportunity to pursue a doctorate that would encompass deep rigorous study of Eastern Christian Spirituality as preserved and transmitted in the Armenian and neighboring Syriac traditions. The seed that was planted in a eureka moment twenty years ago is about to blossom forth in this capstone of my formal education in this field and complete the foundation to launch into work that will occupy me and my future students for many lifetimes. I am both excited and humbled at the prospect and look forward to your partnership in and support of this important work that will benefit seekers everywhere interested in spiritual riches that have been found important enough to the human experience to preserve and transmit down through the ages.
Here is some information about the research project I will be pursuing:
“To know wisdom and instruction...” were the first words to see the light of day upon the creation of the Armenian alphabet. Certainly those pioneering translators exercised great intention as they decided what words to put down first in the language of the Armenian people. Those words from the biblical book of Proverbs continue to serve as the foundation of Armenian thought and scholarship 1,600 years later and frame the work I shall undertake this autumn in pursuit of a Doctor of Philosophy in Armenian Studies and Eastern Christianity from the Oriental Institute at Oxford University. To my knowledge, it would be the first of its kind in the field of Armenian Studies in the western world: a scholarly treatment, in English, of the late eleventh century Armenian translation of Daniel of Salah’s sixth century Syriac Psalms Commentary. Beyond the immediate implications for the furthering of Armenian Studies in expanding accessibility to one of its valuable historic works, bringing to light the thoughts and ideas in this particular work could richly add to the broader fields of theology and philosophy.
As with St. Mesrop Mashtots and his contemporaries, translation work is close to my heart and personal history. The history of an ancestor who completed much of the work on a modern Armenian translation of the Bible in the late 19th century coupled with learning of the untapped riches of the Armenian textual tradition, locked away in more than 30,000 manuscripts, inspired me to begin my study of Classical Armenian sixteen years ago with a deep desire to contribute to making these works accessible both for scholarship purposes and for the edification of the general populace. Much effort has been devoted to works of historical value, while far less has been given to the study of theological and spiritual works. I have worked to do my part to begin filling in this void with several previous translations and now I seek to devote myself more fully to this task through intensive study of four Psalms commentaries in Classical Armenian with longer term goals of translating texts and ideas for the contemporary individual. My expertise in Classical Armenian and knowledge of Syriac allow me to be one of the privileged few worldwide that could undertake this specific project. Following my doctoral studies I hope to continue my work and service full-time to the Armenian community by making our spiritual and intellectual heritage available to both its heirs and the worldwide community. Funding would make this possible and benefit not only my studies, but the scholarship of future generations of Armenian Studies scholars.
About me:
Exactly twenty years ago, the course of my life changed—at first subtly but not long after quite dramatically. The summer before my senior year at Georgetown, where I was studying international politics, I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Abraham Terian, of St. Nersess Seminary, speak on the topic of Classical Armenian and the rich corpus of manuscripts preserved in this language. He held up a pencil to demonstrate, “If this pencil represents all of the works preserved in Classical Armenian, then the sharpened tip shows what portion has been published as is. And you see the tiny graphite tip? That is what portion has been translated or worked with in any meaningful way.” Wow. I let that understanding sink in. In spite of the region’s tumultuous history, Classical Armenian preserves the second largest corpus of manuscripts! And very few people are capable of and working to share these literary treasures with the modern world. It was in that moment that I first thought, “this is something I could do and something I would love doing!” That lecture forever changed me and set in motion the events that led me to the threshold where I find myself today. I went on to complete my degree, and this thought moved to the back of my head, but when I again heard Dr. Terian speak three years later, that spark reignited and I found myself asking him where I could study Classical Armenian. This led me to St. Nersess where I enjoyed three years studying with experts in the language and manuscript tradition. Subsequently I spent a year as a teaching assistant and completed my first translation of a work from Classical Armenian into English, which will be published in the very near future.
Life’s road can be winding, and my course veered for a decade as I responded to what life brought my way. I enjoyed rewarding careers in public finance and in healthcare chaplaincy, both of which have afforded me life experience that will shape my path going forward in important ways. When I first began in chaplaincy, I was introduced to the idea of experiencing people as “living documents” a concept that was very appealing to the scholar in me. As I’ve matured in my experience as a chaplain, I’ve also come to an understanding of texts and manuscripts as embodying a very real and organic life of their own. Only recently have I had the realization that the path to unlocking the vast riches of the Armenian manuscript tradition lies not just in translating these works for people to read, but also in conveying the concepts and ideas they contain in vibrant ways to modern audiences for their own use and integration. After this decade-long period of growth and maturity I am now being offered the extraordinary opportunity to pursue a doctorate that would encompass deep rigorous study of Eastern Christian Spirituality as preserved and transmitted in the Armenian and neighboring Syriac traditions. The seed that was planted in a eureka moment twenty years ago is about to blossom forth in this capstone of my formal education in this field and complete the foundation to launch into work that will occupy me and my future students for many lifetimes. I am both excited and humbled at the prospect and look forward to your partnership in and support of this important work that will benefit seekers everywhere interested in spiritual riches that have been found important enough to the human experience to preserve and transmit down through the ages.
Fundraising team (3)
Daron Bolat
Organizer
Carrollton, TX
Yervant Kutchukian
Beneficiary
Lawrence Webster
Team member
